The last two months were absolutely stacked with incredible beer for me. I started May in Charlotte with brewery hopping and bottle sharing before heading out for a 29 day road trip across Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Ohio, Michigan, and West Virginia.
Mosaic and I visited some of the top breweries in the country (& world) so it is quite difficult to narrow down a list of top beers. This list will look a little different from my normal—in some cases I am listing more than one beer from a brewery because they were that good.
I rated all of these at least a 4.5 on Untappd, for reference. In no particular order, out of 310 beers tried, here were my top beers from May and June 2024:
Triple Vegan + DDH Eugene’s Axe + The Butcher+ Triple Jasper with Nelson from Fidens Brewing Company in Albany, NY
Fidens has been a favorite for me over the past couple of years, so I was stoked to visit their taproom. Their beer on tap is just simply superb, and of course I stocked up on cans to bring home as well. They were also pouring at Nucleate from HOMES which I attended while in Michigan, so I have been quite spoiled with Fidens over the past couple of months!
Triple Vegan is a Triple IPA with Citra, Galaxy and Nelson hops. DDH Eugene’s Axe is a double dry hopped Double IPA with Citra and Galaxy hops. The Butcher is a Double IPA with Mosaic hops in the whirlpool and dry hopped with Galaxy and Nelson. Triple Jasper with Nelson is a Triple IPA with Citra and Nelson hops.
Samuel (Batches 2 and 5) + Wheat Blanc (2022) from Hill Farmstead Brewery in Greensboro Bend, VT
Visiting Hill Farmstead is a remarkably peaceful and relaxing experience. Their taproom is essentially in the middle of nowhere and offers draft pours but also bottle pours.
Samuel is a Saison with organic buckwheat, organic spelt, and Vermont wildflower honey aged in wine barrels and bottle conditioned. I enjoyed Batch 2 and Batch 5 in a side-by-side tasting thanks to some great friends before heading out on my trip, and then I was lucky enough that Hill was pouring Batch 5 while I was at the taproom as well.
Wheat Blanc is a Farmhouse Ale aged in oak and hopped with Hallertauer Blanc. This beer is a little more basic but an absolute delight.
Staglore + Penumbra from Freak Folk Bier in Waterbury, VT
Freak Folk is a wildly underrated brewery in the wildly underrated small town of Waterbury. Their beers, no matter the style, are superb. Two of my favorites from my visit were Staglore and Penumbra. Staglore is a Saison brewed with foraged staghorn sumac and conditioned in oak puncheons with mixed culture. Penumbra is a Saison fermented with mixed culture and matured in oak for 28 months then aged nearly 5 years.
A Test of Awareness + Crown of Illusions + Let’s Get Out of Here from Troon Brewing in Hopewell, NJ
Troon! Hyped and worthy. They don’t have a taproom, but you’re able to try their beers on draft at Brick Farm Tavern on their property + they release crowlers occasionally. I tried all of their beers on tap and loved the entire experience.
Each of these top three beers I had from them are deemed “Hoppy Ales” as they don’t giveaway much of anything, but they were all superb. I was lucky enough to have Let’s Get Out of Here on draft and in a crowler and it was top tier.
Ninth Passing from Burial Beer Company in Asheville, NC
Ninth passing is a Rum and Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Stout with toasted coconut, cocoa nibs, and vanilla beans brewed to celebrate Burial’s ninth anniversary. They’ve since celebrated 11 years, so I figured it was time to crack this bad boy open. Absolutely delicious!
Barrel Aged Space Cuvée from Equilibrium Brewery in Middletown, NY
EQ is a tried and true favorite. While in the Hudson Valley area I knew I had to pay another visit to this gem. The beers, food, and vibes are all great! This particular brew is an Imperial Stout aged in a Weller barrel for 34 months with a vanilla cuvée, vanilla granola and caramel toasted coconut added.
Doubleganger + Golden Fern from Tree House Brewing Company in Charlton, MA
Tree House is one of the OGs in the Hazy IPA game and it felt like a right of passage to visit their beautiful taprooms across Massachusetts. Their location on the beach of Cape Cod in Sandwich is tough to beat with gorgeous views and chill vibes. The main space in Charlton is gorgeous and massive. Deerfield is newer and quite peaceful.
I enjoyed numerous great beers from them on my taproom journey, but Doubleganger and Goldern Fern were my top two. Doubleganger is a Double IPA that is the amped up version of Doppelganger. Golden Fern is a Double IPA with Nelson, Peacharine, Motueka, and Waimea hops
‘Nana This from CLAG Brewing Company in Sandusky, OH
‘Nana This is an Imperial Stout aged 15 months in Old Carter barrels, conditioned on coconut, coffee, vanilla beans, cinnamon, cocoa nibs and banana. CLAG can do it all—IPAs, Lagers, and this decadent Stout. Their taproom is out of the way (unless you’re visiting Cedar Point!) but absolutely worth a visit!
Say Yes from Lua Brewing in Des Moines, IA
Say Yes is a Fruited Sour with blackberry, boysenberry, and blue raspberry. Lua always has great beers and I was very happy to see them at Nucleate from HOMES. This Sour was superb—packed with flavor and easily a favorite of the festival.
Second Hand Coffins collaboration brew from Foam Brewers in Burlington, VT and Widowmaker Brewing in Braintree, MA
This Oat Triple IPA from two New England greats. I enjoyed it on tap at Foam, which helped make up for the fact that Widowmaker was closed when I was in the area. Deliciously juicy and great with views of Lake Champlain.
Parlance: 2022 Harvest Shiro from Suarez Family Brewery in Hudson, NY
Suarez is an interesting spot to visit with just two beers on tap and a handful of onsite bottles. Their beer is always top-notch. Coincidentally right before I left Charlotte and was able to visit Suarez I decided to crack this bottle. This is a Country beer with Shiro plums and is absolutely delicious!
